John,
Hollywood has led us to believe that sharks are man-eating monsters, but shark attacks on humans happen in fiction like Jaws and Sharknado far more often than in reality. While there are six Sharknado movies, there were five reported shark bite fatalities in 2019—worldwide.
John, something much deadlier than sharks is lurking in our oceans and waterways, threatening both humans and wildlife: Plastic pollution. Scientists estimate that 5 to 14 million tons of plastic enter our oceans every year, and new research found that plastic pollution is likely entangling thousands of sharks.
Our ocean ecosystems depend on sharks. They are friends—not foes. Will you pledge to be a friend to sharks and help stop the deadly flow of plastic into our waters?
Plastic pollution is just one of the threats facing sharks today. They have a reputation as the ocean’s deadliest predators, but people are far more dangerous to sharks than they are to us. Humans kill between 63 million and 273 million sharks annually, with an average of around 100 million sharks killed every year.
Sharks desperately need your support, John. Will you stand up for these essential ocean creatures and pledge to be a friend to sharks?
We have to turn the tide in the battle against plastic pollution in our waters — the devastation affects every species on Earth. That’s why we’re asking you to help end plastic pollution and pledge your support for sharks today.
There are more than 500 species of sharks and they live in every ocean on Earth, from the darkest, deepest trenches to tropical shallows to freezing polar waters—a few species can even survive in freshwater. Plastic pollution is also found in every part of every ocean on Earth, as well as all of our freshwaters without sharks.
We are losing the battle against plastic pollution, and potentially losing thousands of sharks to deadly plastic littered throughout our oceans. Don’t allow plastic to choke the life out of our oceans. Will you be a friend to sharks and help eliminate plastic pollution?
Thank you for standing with us to defend sharks and all of America’s wildlife.
-The National Wildlife Federation Membership Team
